


like sunsets and summertime

by itsziallbaby



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: M/M, au fluff idk what this actually is just accept it i haven't written anything in forever i'm sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-20
Updated: 2013-09-20
Packaged: 2017-12-27 03:00:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/973521
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/itsziallbaby/pseuds/itsziallbaby
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>it was that summer feeling. it had to be. </p>
<p>or the one in which zayn and liam are both dorks that should kiss all the time</p>
            </blockquote>





	like sunsets and summertime

**Author's Note:**

> short little story that is completely unedited, sorry for any mistakes.   
> if you leave a comment or kudo (or both!) i love you and hope you find money in the street today.

It was that summer feeling. It had to be. 

It was that sticky sweet drink Liam had been handed. It was that one hit of skunky weed he took because Niall wouldn’t leave him alone until he tried it. It was the warm breeze and the feeling of the sun on his neck and knowing he was free from school work for the next two months. 

It was all of that mixed in with hazel brown eyes and pouty lips and tattoos that Liam couldn’t stop staring at. It was all of that mixed in with his English TA sucking on a Marlboro looking like a fucking Gucci model. It was summer and freedom and Zayn. 

“Want one?” He asks, and Liam realizes he might have been staring. 

“Yea-no. No. I don’t really smoke. Sorry.” Liam stammers out and suddenly he’s sweating and it’s not from the heat. 

Zayn smiles and Liam doesn’t know what to do with his hands. “Nothing to be sorry for, mate. Probably best you don’t. Health and all that shit.” He tips his cigarette up like a salute to Liam for the choice he’s made for his lungs. 

Liam smiles and nods back because his tongue feels heavy in his mouth and what could he possibly say that would interest Zayn? 

Thankfully (and God, Liam thought he’d never say this) Niall shows up just then, two beers in hand as is usual, and this time Liam takes it without even having to be persuaded. 

“That’s my man!” Niall shouts, gleeful and red faced and so very Irish. Liam brings the bottle to his lips and out of the corner of his eye sees Zayn smiling at the ground looking charmed. Or is that just Liam being hopeful? 

“Zayn!” Niall shouts like they’re long lost brothers and of course Niall knows Zayn, Niall knows everybody. 

Zayn smiles and opens his arms for a hug and Jesus, Liam has never been so jealous in his entire life. Niall gets to just fall into Zayn’s arms like it’s nothing, they pull apart and Niall rubs a hand against Zayn’s hair and oh, how many lectures did Liam miss while imagining exactly how it’d feel like? 

“Eh Liam? Liam?” And damn, he got lost in his thoughts again. 

It’s just hard to focus when he’s around Zayn. It’s hard to pay attention to his aging English professor talk about transcendentalism versus modern romanticism when Zayn is sitting at a desk in the corner looking like heaven and sin and everything in between wearing tight jeans and a leather jacket.

“Oi, what’s going on up there Payno?” Niall asks, tapping on Liam’s forehead and yeah, maybe he should start paying attention. 

“Sorry, what?” Liam asks, trying not to look over at Zayn’s smirk and failing. 

“How’d you know my man Malik?” 

Niall’s glazey blue eyes are on him and so are Zayn’s brown ones and shit, Liam might be sick. 

“English class. Well, sort of. He was my teacher, no teacher’s aide, Zayn was my TA. In English.” 

Niall laughs and starts going off about something else and Liam’s glad that the attention is off him, he even manages to finish the lukewarm beer Niall handed to him and quietly listen to him and Zayn discuss football. 

“Wouldn’t have expected to see you at a party like this, if I’m being honest.” Zayn says, a little while later after Niall has gone trampling off to greet another friend and it’s just the two of them. 

Liam shrugs because honestly he doesn’t go to these things. But his last final was yesterday and it’s Louis’s frat (not that he’d even seen him tonight) and if he wasn’t here to make sure Niall got home okay, who would?

“It’s cool to see you outside of class though,” Zayn continues and it takes everything in Liam to not jump up and down or say something daft. “You were always pretty quiet.” 

Liam was quiet, quiet and shy and unsure why Zayn was still talking to him. Zayn is the coolest person Liam knows, and Liam’s just this lame kid with a dorky accent and a box of Batman comics under his bed next to his stored winter clothes, clearly marked as such with the help of his label maker. 

See, Liam was just this ordinary kid who was only taking Comparative English Literature because despite being a sound production major, he still needed an English credit and Zayn quoted Bukowski and Dickens and Plath (Liam only knew who they were after a quick google search on his phone) to the class when the professor left him in charge and Liam may or may not have been harboring a burning crush on the older guy ever since he laid eyes on him. 

“S’getting a bit loud over here, yeah?” Zayn is saying, and shit, Liam really needs to start paying attention. “Fancy a walk?” 

Liam gulps, audible and embarrassing and oh-so-obvious, but nods his head eagerly and feels butterflies all the way down to his toes when he sees Zayn smile in response.   
They exit the back lawn of the frat house and end up wandering the University’s surrounding neighborhood. 

It’s late spring and between the constant English rain, there are nights like these, warm and dry and lovely. The last rays of sunlight are shining through pink clouds and if Liam wasn’t so distracted by a certain unattainable TA next to him, he’d probably stop and stare at the site for a minute. 

“I hate sunsets.” Zayn says suddenly, and all Liam can do is stare open mouthed and incredulous because, like, what? 

“I hate endings.” Zayn says explaining, and Liam has to remind himself to pay attention to his words rather than the shape of his lips. “It’s like, I don’t know, we have this thing,” he’s making hand gestures at the sky and Liam is helplessly lost to what he’s talking about and hopelessly crushing on Zayn’s long fingers and thin wrists and tattooed arms. “This awesome, beautiful, thing; but you can never really enjoy it because you know that every second it’s closer to being gone.” 

Liam nods and forces himself not to reach out to trace the palm tree on Zayn’s forearm, did he go to California? Did he go to the beach in shorts and a hoodie with a sketchbook and sunglasses, oh, Zayn in sunglasses. 

Talking, conversation, Liam is supposed to respond he suddenly remembers. “Yeah, but what if it wasn’t the best sunset? Y’know, like what if tomorrow’s is even better? What if the greatest sunset of your life isn’t until you’re like eighty? It’s a nice sunset,” Liam says gesturing to the sky (and God he hopes they’re talking about sunsets), “but you have all the rest to look forward to too.” 

Zayn looks at him for a long time and Liam blushes, nervous he said the wrong thing again. 

“M’gonna kiss you now okay?” Zayn says, and before Liam can even process the words, Zayn’s chapped lips are touching Liam’s. 

It’s not a real kiss, Zayn’s lips are just gently grazing against Liam’s, but it’s just as intense. The smell of smoke and cologne and beer fill Liam’s nostrils and now Zayn’s fingers are dancing along the sides of his arms and Liam realizes this is him asking for permission. 

Maybe he’s a little too enthusiastic, but it’s dark now and there are crickets in the background and the faint sounds of the party can still be heard and God, Liam has wanted this since fall. He leans into the kiss eagerly, making Zayn stumble backwards; Liam catches him though, a steady arm wrapped around his waist and a low laugh spilling out of Zayn’s mouth into his. 

The stubble on Zayn’s chin tickles Liam’s and he has to step back for a minute because, whoa, he, Liam Payne, was kissing Zayn Malik and like how? 

“Sorry,” Zayn says, as soon as their lips are parted, “sorry, sorry, sorry. That was stupid. Sorry, I just, I liked you and God, I’m so dumb, I’m sorry, I don’t even- do you even like lads? Not that you have to answer that, sorry. Sorry.” 

Liam stares back, wide eyed and oh so confused. Why was Zayn apologizing? 

“Wait, what?” 

Zayn covers his face with his hands before racking them through his hair, “I just, sorry, I thought, I don’t know. That wasn’t very cool of me, I’m not very cool, shouldn’t have just kissed you like that sorry.” 

“I think you’re cool,” Liam mumbles, looking at the scuffs on his sneakers and wishing he was kissing Zayn again. 

“Yeah?” Liam looks up at Zayn’s face, talking and thinking would be a lot easier if he wasn’t so goddamn beautiful, and nods. 

“M’not.” Zayn replies and Liam hopes that wherever this is going it ends up with more kissing. “M’kinda a huge nerd actually.” 

“I’ve got a box of comics under my bed,” Liam admits, this is going good right? 

Zayn smiles like it’s Christmas morning so Liam thinks it must be. “I’m getting a Power Ranger tattoo on Monday.” 

Liam smiles. “Cool. Can I come?” He winces inwardly after asking, why would Zayn want you there, are you daft? 

But for some unknown reason Zayn nods eagerly. “Yeah! Help me decide which one, can’t choose between the black and the red.” 

“Red. Definitely.” 

Zayn smiles again and Liam wonders if maybe this is all a dream, maybe he’ll wake up in his dorm any second to the wail of his alarm clock and Andy grumbling to shut it up. 

“I’m going to kiss you now again?” Zayn says, and Liam really, really hopes this isn’t a dream. 

“Yeah, yeah sur-” He’s cut off by Zayn pressing close against him and Zayn’s lips pressing against his and Zayn’s smell and Zayn’s hands and Zayn’s stubble and Zayn. 

They pull apart after a bit and Liam thinks it may be the most perfect night of his life. 

“My flat’s not too far from here, I’ve got the Avengers...” Superheros sound nice but Zayn had Liam since September. 

“Cool.” 

“Cool.” Zayn smiles and Liam has to kiss him again. And again. One last time. 

They finally start making their way towards Zayn’s place, hand in hand both of their cheeks blushing red, and Liam thinks that tonight was pretty good. 

But tomorrow might be better.

**Author's Note:**

> follow me on tumblr at not-poetic.tumblr.com and give me feedback!! pretty please!! I'll follow you back and love you forever and bake symbolic cookies for you.


End file.
